Richard LeMieux, formerly a successful entrepreneur as well as a homeless man, wanted to write about, and then talk about, what he loves most – life – especially, after getting a new lease on it.
And talk he did, to 300 guests at the Salvation Army of Indian River County annual dinner at Oak Harbor last Saturday. LeMieux, the keynote speaker, touted the faith-based international charitable organization, and the people who helped him see the light, pulling him out of the dregs of homelessness.
“I like to call it a love story about life,” LeMieux said of his book, “Breakfast at Sally’s: One Homeless Man’s Inspirational Journey” (Skyhorse Publishing), which has sold over 100,000 copies and is available at major books stores and online.
“I am speaking to the real heroes tonight, those who are associated with the Salvation Army … and others who helped,” he told the audience made up mostly of volunteers and supporters of the local chapter. “If it wasn’t for the Salvation Army and the people who served meals at different churches in Washington State, I would not be alive. I would not have had anywhere to eat, no hope to live again. Those organizations, and the people who are there, are angels. They save lives.”
LeMieux, once a sports reporter, later owned a business that provided printed medical and university directories. The publishing company collapsed in part due to the advent of the Internet, leading the then-59 year-old into an endless spiral down into the depths of despair. He lost his luxurious waterfront home near Seattle, boats and expensive cars. His financial and emotional nosedive took its toll on his relationship with his wife and children.
His female Bichon Frise, Willow the Wonder dog, and an Oldsmobile van, were his only supports. At one point, his attempt to jump off a bridge was thwarted by the timely barking of his dog from the van parked nearby.
With that, he returned to the van, and went on to seek help at charitable organizations, community programs and churches. He acquired an old typewriter at a secondhand store on which he wrote about the people he met and his experiences as a homeless person. He hung out at the Salvation Army in Bremerton, WA, which he and other homeless people fondly refer to as “Sally’s.”
“Every book is a love story,” said LeMieux, who has been on tour promoting his book, released in 2008. “If you love golf, you write about golf, share your knowledge about golf. If you love flowers, you write about flowers. My book is about my love of life.
“It is a new different life, one that was enlightening to me, one that gave me a new look at things,” he said of homelessness.
After cocktails, guests enjoyed filet mignon served on chinaware served to tables with lovely bouquets as centerpieces, while listening to LeMieux’s heart-wrenching story. Three children from the Salvation Army’s after-school music program performed an arrangement of “Ode to Joy” before the silent auction bidding came to a close.
Local chapter president Major Sam Van Denberg stressed the importance of the organization. “It is all about helping people,” he said, citing statistics outlined in a 2013 report. Social services were rendered to 3,675 people in 2013, and some 13,602 meals were served at the soup kitchen. Some 6,998 volunteers served 28,440 hours.
LeMieux, who currently lives in an apartment in Bremerton, an hour from Seattle, couldn’t say enough good things about people who help the needy. “Today, our heroes seem to be sports people – basketball stars, football stars. But the real heroes in my mind are those who help others; who help them when they are down and out.”
Soberly, he added, “Just about everybody can become homeless. It is not something you are totally protected from. I have run into people like me who had a successful life, and then ended up living on the street. There are some who are still on the street and no one there to help them. That’s the sad thing.”